Jennifer Steinkamp's site-specific projections generate dynamic environments
Video and new media artist Jennifer Steinkamp discusses with STIR the engagement with dynamics and simulating natural physics through her practice.
by Daria KravchukPublished on : Dec 12, 2023
Many artists elicit novel experiences, prompting viewers to engage with a discerning objectivity. Conversely, a subset of the artist's endeavour is to forge environments wherein the audience is profoundly engrossed in a kaleidoscopic temporal continuum. In the artistic domain of Jennifer Steinkamp, spectators transcend their role as external observers, undergoing a transformative immersion within the core of the artwork. The American artist's spatially extensive installations submerge the audience into an environment where the intersection of video and new media create a hypnotic universe, fostering a nuanced exploration of architectural spatiality, dynamics, and perceptual intricacies. A distinguished pioneer in 3D animation and new media art, Steinkamp's career spans over 30 years with her monumental installations showcased across the globe in museums, galleries, and public spaces.
Orbit 11 (2011), Jennifer Steinkamp, Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis, MO, 2013Video: Courtesy of Jennifer Steinkamp
"I have always engaged with dynamics, simulating natural physics like gravity, collisions, and wind forces—essentially, invisible forces," reveals Steinkamp. Her enduring attraction to these elements is palpable throughout her body of work, although its manifestation varies depending on the specific project at hand.
Winter Fountains (2017) by Jennifer SteinkampVideo: Courtesy of Jennifer Steinkamp
In the realm of Steinkamp's artistic endeavours, she crafts projections tailored to specific sites, deftly enhancing the architectural backdrop by skillfully blurring the boundaries that separate the concrete from the illusory. Within these dynamic spaces, brimming with animated elements, hidden within are often profound layers, resonating with personal or historical meanings.
Still-Life 3, 2020, at exhibition Axis of Horizon, MMCA, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, South Korea, Jennifer SteinkampImage: Yoonjae Kim
Within each series of works, Steinkamp engages in the intricate design and digital simulation of diverse elements—ranging from drifting fabrics and rocks to trees, fruits and flowers. Her artistic repertoire serves as a deep exploration of the natural world, finding inspiration in a rich tapestry of art historical genres, including 16th century Dutch still-life painting, scientific illustrations, and the visual language of nature photography.
The Still-Life series from 2016 is a homage to the 16th century Dutch and Flemish still-life painting genre, renowned for weaving visual allegories about life's fragility and the inexorable flow of time. Reflecting on her process, Steinkamp notes, "In certain ways, Dutch still lifes serve as inspiration due to the medium I work with—computer imagery, and the unique colour and lighting it provides. I challenged myself to recreate more still-life-oriented lighting, pushing me towards a lighting style that I truly appreciate."
Botanic, 2015-2023, Jennifer Steinkamp at Midnight Moment, Presented by Times Square Art, New York, NY in 2016, Dimensions: Times Square 63 LED displaysImage: James Ewing / JBSA
In 2016, Steinkamp joined the esteemed roster of artists participating in the Midnight Moment, the world's largest and longest-running digital public art initiative. Nightly, from 11:57 pm to midnight, over 92 digital displays spanning Times Square's 41st to 49th Streets in New York come alive, showcasing contemporary art to millions of people. This monumental program, a collaboration between the Times Square Advertising Coalition and billboard operators, showcased public art 364 nights a year. Steinkamp's artwork, Botanic, implicated the audience in scenarios which featured the flowers, causing collisions that broke them into seeds, twigs, leaves, and petals. By spanning multiple screens in Times Square, the video expanded to the city's space, where the juxtaposition of natural imagery against man-made architecture unfolded. Reflecting on her inspiration, Steinkamp shares, "Sometimes it's site-specific, sometimes it’s related to politics, sometimes it's about botanical flowers, usually Latin plant names—an educational garden. In 2015 when I started my Botanic series, it was a commission for the Stanford Medical Center. I was inspired by the concept of a scientific or botanical garden or rather a collection of plants labelled with their botanical names typically housed within an educational context. That caught my eye, and it expanded from there."
Womb 1, 2018, Interactive installation of VR equipment at Lehmann Maupin, 22nd Street, New York in 2019, Jennifer SteinkampImage: Courtesy of Lehmann Maupin
Reflecting on her creative process, Steinkamp remarks, "I am constantly integrating new technology while holding onto the old. For instance, in my virtual reality piece, Womb (2019), showcased at Lehmann Maupin gallery, I utilised VR controllers and tracking systems, projecting instead of relying on a headset. Immersive due to its spatial nature, it offers a different dimension from a traditional VR experience. Utilising contemporary technology, this interactive VR piece was a spatial experience.”
Dervish 11, 14, 1, 2004-2005 at Espacio Fundación Telefónica, Madrid, Spain, 2018, Jennifer SteinkampImage: Jennifer Steinkamp, Courtesy of Lehmann Maupin
Context in which the artworks are being displayed is a very strong tool in itself. When Jennifer Steinkamp received an invitation to create a project for the Tadao Ando-designed building of The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, USA, she started working with the local context and explored the museum's surroundings, discovering a landscape adorned with birch trees—a species she had always admired. Delving into their cultural implications, she turned to the works of Gustav Klimt, fascinated by his attention to the details of birch bark. Vincent van Gogh's forest painting further captivated her. The trees' flexibility intrigued her, especially the knots resembling mysterious eyes. In crafting Blind Eye in 2018, a roughly three-minute long animated loop, which depicts a life-size grove of birch trees cycling through the seasons, Steinkamp aimed for these eyes to convey an impression rather than a literal representation. Her focus shifted to playing with the constraints of vision, particularly monocular vision, and its impact on perspective. An additional challenge lay in seamlessly looping the visuals to evade the viewer's notice, prompting some to engage with the work for extended periods, watching a ten-second loop for as long as 20 minutes. Steinkamp opts for a departure into the domain of non-narrative concepts, exploring the nuanced facets of change without adhering to structured storytelling. The realm of the artwork Blind Eye is unfolding a movement of trees swaying gracefully, their leaves descending with intermittent intensity. While the subtle nod to changing seasons persists, it breaks free from the confines of linear narratives, occupying a temporal moment that stands independent of its traditional context.
Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event at Center for the Art of Performance UCLA, Royce Hall, Los Angeles, CA, 2019, Jennifer SteinkampImage: Reed Hutchinson
In 2019, Steinkamp took part in a centenary of a luminary choreographer of the latter half of the 20th century, Merce Cunningham, when his artistic legacy was commemorated through the Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event. Three simultaneous programs unfolded in London, New York, and at UCLA's Royce Hall, mirroring Cunningham's practice, where chance dictated the fusion of dance fragments. Dancers from various companies, independent music, and decor all converged only during the premiere. For UCLA’s Royce Hall, Jennifer Steinkamp crafted a computer video backdrop featuring flowing, fluttering forests, flowers, and fruits, producing a daring visual spectacle. Steinkamp comments, “It was entirely improvisational, mirroring Cunningham's approach. Dancers, musicians, and myself worked independently, and miraculously, it all came together for the performance. It turned out great, though I wasn't sure how it would unfold.”
Renewal 2 by Jennifer SteinkampVideo: Courtesy of Jennifer Steinkamp
Speaking about the artwork Renewal, crafted for a Commerce Bank in Missouri in 2022, Steinkamp reveals the inspiration behind it: "I researched the area—Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa—known for their prairies. Prairies naturally undergo controlled burns, a phenomenon occurring annually. Indigenous peoples and nature alike employ this practice to suppress tree growth and invasives, fostering the prairie's health. Exploring the land's pre-colonial history, I uncovered documents detailing its measurement, providing a list of plants encountered during that process, which helped to create Renewal. This paradoxical display transforms the act of burning, traditionally a symbol of destruction, into an unexpected catalyst for growth and rejuvenation.
Madame Curie, 2011, Installation at Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, CA, 2011 and 2017, Jennifer SteinkampImage: Robert Wedemeyer
Operating exclusively within the realm of digital media, Steinkamp harnesses cutting-edge technology to breathe life into both organic and abstract forms, shedding light on the often overlooked intricacies of the natural world. Her immersive installations unfold on a grand scale, actively responding to the architectural nuances of their surroundings. This way they redefine the viewer's conventional museum or gallery experience, offering a more profound understanding of both space and time.